Introducing Helen Jackson, who recently joined Sanctuary in Chichester as Trustee Lead for Safeguarding.

I’m Executive Director of Mosaic Middle East, a UK charity running humanitarian and development programmes in Iraq, Gaza, the West Bank and Jordan, and I’ve recently joined the board at Sanctuary in Chichester as the Trustee Lead for Safeguarding.

Before moving into charity leadership I trained and worked as a teacher. That background has certainly helped shape my understanding of how education and language are such important steps towards feeling that you belong somewhere, rather than just giving you practical skills – something which I see is a really valuable part of what Sanctuary in Chichester provides.

Over the years running Mosaic I have developed a strong grounding in charity governance, safeguarding and fundraising, and I have had the privilege of visiting our programmes across the Middle East, undoubtedly the most rewarding part of my job. I hope this experience will be of real use to the trustee board, while I learn a great deal from everyone here as well.

I came across Sanctuary in Chichester through its reputation locally, and what struck me was the importance of community – local people simply coming alongside others to welcome and support them. It’s exactly what I see making the biggest difference in Mosaic’s work too: when a local community opens its doors, that’s when real, lasting change happens.

I wanted to get involved with Sanctuary in Chichester because I believe deeply in what it stands for, and because I wanted to put my time and experience towards something happening here, in my own community. It feels like a natural extension of the work I care about, just expressed a little closer to home.